2025 Asean Para Games: Boccia players Aloysius Gan, Nurulasyiqah Taha win S’pore’s 13th gold
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(Seated, from left) Singapore's Nurulasyiqah Mohd Taha and Aloysius Gan with (standing, from far left) athlete competition partner Nur Azizah, Singapore National Paralympic Council president Teo-Koh Sock Miang, Asean Para Games chef de mission Gary Chong, Team Singapore boccia coach Kagan Gan and athlete competition partner Eve Cher.
PHOTO: DEJBORDIN LIMSUPANARK/SPORTSG
Joel Chang
- Singapore's Aloysius Gan and Nurulasyiqah Mohd Taha secured gold in the Asean Para Games' mixed pair BC3 boccia event, defeating Thailand 3-1.
- Gan and Nurulasyiqah also won individual gold medals in the BC3 category, contributing to Singapore's final total of 13 golds.
- Chef de mission Gary Chong commended Singapore's athletes, noting that it was a positive showing with plenty to build upon moving forward.
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SINGAPORE – Playing against home favourites, Singapore’s boccia athletes Aloysius Gan and Nurulasyiqah Mohd Taha knew they were fighting an uphill battle in the Asean Para Games’ (APG) mixed pair BC3 final in Korat, Thailand, on Jan 25.
The raucous home crowd were getting behind countrymen Withun Chanthakhat and Ladamanee Kla Han, making it a tense atmosphere at Korat’s Chatchai Hall.
Despite this, the Singapore pair steadied their nerves and won 3-1 to claim three victories in as many round-robin group matches, having overcome Indonesia (4-1) and Malaysia (7-3) on Jan 24.
Indonesia, who defeated Malaysia 4-2 on Jan 25, finished second with two wins and one loss, with the Thais third on one win and two defeats.
With the victory on the final day of competition, the pair clinched Singapore’s 13th gold medal at these Games, surpassing the tally of 12 from the last edition in Cambodia in 2023.
Boccia is an indoor Paralympic sport which requires competitors to throw leather balls as close to a target as possible.
Players are assigned to one of four sport classes, depending on their functional ability. In the BC3 category, athletes are allowed to use a ramp to roll the ball to the target.
Nurulasyiqah, 40, said they kept their cool and did what they needed to do, adding that it is “a testament to how we have trained hard over the years to put up a good performance”.
Gan, 20, noted: “We communicated well and supported each other for every ball we played – it was a true team performance.”
It was also the second gold medal for both Nurulasyiqah and Gan in Korat. At the same venue on Jan 23, they had prevailed in the men’s and women’s individual BC3 finals, with Gan defeating Withun 3-1 and Nurulasyiqah winning 6-1 over Indonesian Suci Kirana Dewi.
Nurulasyiqah, who has spinal muscular atrophy, remarked that surpassing the gold haul from 2023 was a bonus.
“There was never the pressure or expectation put on us to surpass previous editions of the Games, but to be able to deliver the 13th gold medal and outdo our previous gold medal tally is the icing on the cake,” she said.
For Gan, who has cerebral palsy, it is the first time that he had won double gold at the biennial Games.
On his APG debut in 2022, he finished second in the individual event and won the mixed pair title with Toh Sze Ning. In 2023, he retained his individual silver and won a mixed pair bronze with Toh.
Gan noted that the journey was one of persistence, highlighting the progress both he and Nurulasyiqah have made in their boccia journeys.
“Winning one was the goal, but two… it’s a dream come true,” he added.
For Nurulasyiqah, the gold medals come as the latest additions in her storied career, dating all the way back to 2004.
The two-time Paralympian recalled also winning double gold at the 2014 APG in Myanmar, prevailing in the individual category as well as the pairs with Toh.
Her sights are now set on qualifying for the Asian Para Games in Japan in October.
Singapore have won a total of four golds in boccia in Thailand, with four-time Paralympian and sailor-turned-boccia athlete Jovin Tan also standing atop the podium in the men’s individual BC1 on Jan 23.
Para bowlers Vincent Loo and Low Chang Hong won a bronze on Jan 25 afternoon after finishing third out of six in the mixed doubles TPB9 + TPB9 event.
This took Singapore’s medal haul at these Games to 13 golds, seven silvers and nine bronzes. In 2023, the tally was 12-15-17.
Speaking on Team Singapore’s showing in Korat, chef de mission Gary Chong commended the athletes’ grit, discipline and unity.
“Overall, this has been a very encouraging and satisfactory showing,” he said.
“Not only did we surpass our gold medal tally from the last Games in 2023, but we also saw many athletes achieve personal bests and breakthrough performances.”
This included para swimmer Danielle Moi’s national record in the women’s 100m backstroke S14 on Jan 25, when she clocked 1min 22.93sec and finished fourth.
Chong added: “Ultimately, this campaign has given us much to celebrate and build upon, reinforcing the values of strong athlete support systems not just in sports coaching, but through athlete mental well-being and strong sport science and medical support.”
